Goldfish Water Changes

The best way to control nitrates is water changes. With goldfish, 100% water changes weekly.

Also, why are you trying to change the pH? Not judging, just trying to understand.

 

PS. Petco dollar per gallon sale is running.. 20 gallon tank equals 20 dollars

 

have you thought about a storage container, a 20G or 30G, not the thin clear sterlite ones, but the thicker black ones at home improvement stores. mine is approx 50G.





you can drill or cut small holes in the lid for when you're not around so the cats can't get into it.

27G $10


17G $8

 

I definitely wouldn't do 100% weekly. That is a lot of stress on a fish. Being removed from his tank temporarily, getting 100% new water which can cause larger fluctuations in things depending on the tap water readings. And letting it sit all week and changing it all at once just isn't the best way to do it IMO. Its less stressful on the fish to do water changes more frequently rather than making the weekly water change larger.

I suggest 50% 2-3 times per week going forward. HOWEVER with nitrates that high, you will want to do some big water changes daily until you get that down. Once you get it under control, 2-3 50% water changes per weed should maintain it. The best way to guage that is by getting your own test kit so you can keep an eye on how fast your nitrates rise. You want to try and keep them under 40ppm at least, but preferably under 20ppm. So you can keep an eye on how fast they rise in order to determine your frequency of water changes.

Have you tested ammonia and nitrites? You will need to keep an eye on those too when determining how frequent you need to change water.


Also, don't concern yourself with PH. A stable ph is very important, and when you start messing with it, it becomes harder to keep stable.

 

Also, why are you trying to change the pH? Not judging, just trying to understand.

My PH is above the Goldfish preferred range. I guess in a way my "New Year's Resolution" was to make my fish's life better. I read around and 7.2-7.6 is the preferred pH for Goldies so I wanted to lower it. The pH in my tank is 7.8-8.2 (I don't remember precisely)

I definitely wouldn't do 100% weekly. That is a lot of stress on a fish. Being removed from his tank temporarily, getting 100% new water which can cause larger fluctuations in things depending on the tap water readings. And letting it sit all week and changing it all at once just isn't the best way to do it IMO. Its less stressful on the fish to do water changes more frequently rather than making the weekly water change larger.

I suggest 50% 2-3 times per week going forward. HOWEVER with nitrates that high, you will want to do some big water changes daily until you get that down. Once you get it under control, 2-3 50% water changes per weed should maintain it. The best way to guage that is by getting your own test kit so you can keep an eye on how fast your nitrates rise. You want to try and keep them under 40ppm at least, but preferably under 20ppm. So you can keep an eye on how fast they rise in order to determine your frequency of water changes.

Have you tested ammonia and nitrites? You will need to keep an eye on those too when determining how frequent you need to change water.


Also, don't concern yourself with PH. A stable ph is very important, and when you start messing with it, it becomes harder to keep stable.

I don't remember it it was nitrates or nitrites, but nevermind that now. My ammonia is in between the safe and ideal zone on my test strip.

 

My PH is above the Goldfish preferred range. I guess in a way my "New Year's Resolution" was to make my fish's life better. I read around and 7.2-7.6 is the preferred pH for Goldies so I wanted to lower it. The pH in my tank is 7.8-8.2 (I don't remember precisely)

As I just said in my previous post, a stable pH is much more important than trying to change your pH. It makes it very hard to keep stable when you start messing with it. And goldfish are hardy enough to adapt to different pH levels and yours really isn't that far off anyway.

 

I definitely wouldn't do 100% weekly. That is a lot of stress on a fish. Being removed from his tank temporarily, getting 100% new water which can cause larger fluctuations in things depending on the tap water readings. And letting it sit all week and changing it all at once just isn't the best way to do it IMO. Its less stressful on the fish to do water changes more frequently rather than making the weekly water change larger.

I suggest 50% 2-3 times per week going forward. HOWEVER with nitrates that high, you will want to do some big water changes daily until you get that down. Once you get it under control, 2-3 50% water changes per weed should maintain it. The best way to guage that is by getting your own test kit so you can keep an eye on how fast your nitrates rise. You want to try and keep them under 40ppm at least, but preferably under 20ppm. So you can keep an eye on how fast they rise in order to determine your frequency of water changes.

Have you tested ammonia and nitrites? You will need to keep an eye on those too when determining how frequent you need to change water.


Also, don't concern yourself with PH. A stable ph is very important, and when you start messing with it, it becomes harder to keep stable.

I don't remember it it was nitrates or nitrites, but nevermind that now. My ammonia is in between the safe and ideal zone on my test strip.

PS. Petco dollar per gallon sale is running.. 20 gallon tank equals 20 dollars

Dangit! My nearest petco is 2 hours away!

 

I don't remember it it was nitrates or nitrites, but nevermind that now. My ammonia is in between the safe and ideal zone on my test strip.

200ppm nitrites would be insane and impossible to survive in. And the nitrite test doesn't even go that high. Nitrite is usually in the single digits for PPM.

 

Your fish will be just fine at that pH. Most important is getting a proper bio filter established so that you have 0ammonia, 0 nitrite, and low nitrates. Again, you can keep nitrates under control with water changes. If your nitrates now are around 200, you’ll want to gradually decrease that amount - don’t do it all at once.

 

200ppm nitrites would be insane and impossible to survive in. And the nitrite test doesn't even go that high. Nitrite is usually in the single digits for PPM.

Maybe it wasn't PPM, and I don't remember correctly. It might be 20. I did the test three days ago and can't access my records for it. I might be way off. I will let you all know tomorrow, what my levels are.

 

Maybe it wasn't PPM, and I don't remember correctly. It might be 20. I did the test three days ago and can't access my records for it. I might be way off. I will let you all know tomorrow, what my levels are.

What test are you using? Liquid? Strips?

 

For 6 years?? A common goldfish will be a foot long in 2-3 years.... if kept properly. That means a minimum of 180 gallons.

Not exactly true about size. The average adult size of a common goldfish is 4". They can get up to 8-10" and even bigger under the right conditions. Their average lifespan is 5-10 years.

I had a 37 gallon cross brace brake and the front glass cracked this last spring.

I've had my goldfish since I was 11, and up until recently I was irresponsible and did monthly (sometimes every month and a half) water changes, resulting in the death of one of my beloved goldfish, Ethel. (she was awesome, she was white with an orange spot on the top of her head and a black spot in that orange spot) I now realize that 10 gallons might be too small, after doing a boatload of research (instead of having my mom do it like I used to), and am wondering this: Will two goldfish survive in 10 gallons with weekly 25% water changes? At least for 6 years until I move out and can get a 20 gallon tank? Thankies!

Your goldfish should do fine in a 10 gallon tank AS LONG AS: your tank is cycled, you do 25%-50% water changes every week or more, you only feed your fish what he will eat in 2-3 minutes, you have a good running filter that is kept free of clogs and debris in the intake tube, outflow path and around the impeller and you regularly rinse the filter media and replace it as necessary.
My grandkids have three carnival goldfish, one is 8 years old (counting just since he was saved from a cup at the fair) and 3" long, he lives in a 5 gallon tank, the other two are 5 years old and about 2" each, obtained the same way and live together in another 5 gallon tank. None of them have ever been sick-but regular water changes, a varied diet given judiciously, and filter maintenance are practiced. If your Goldie gets too big for his tank, THEN get a bigger tank! No sense spending money on a saddle for a horse if you have a pony! Lol!

 

Not exactly true about size. The average adult size of a common goldfish is 4". They can get up to 8-10" and even bigger under the right conditions. Their average lifespan is 5-10 years.


Your goldfish should do fine in a 10 gallon tank AS LONG AS: your tank is cycled, you do 25%-50% water changes every week or more, you only feed your fish what he will eat in 2-3 minutes, you have a good running filter that is kept free of clogs and debris in the intake tube, outflow path and around the impeller and you regularly rinse the filter media and replace it as necessary.
My grandkids have three carnival goldfish, one is 8 years old (counting just since he was saved from a cup at the fair) and 3" long, he lives in a 5 gallon tank, the other two are 5 years old and about 2" each, obtained the same way and live together in another 5 gallon tank. None of them have ever been sick-but regular water changes, a varied diet given judiciously, and filter maintenance are practiced. If your Goldie gets too big for his tank, THEN get a bigger tank! No sense spending money on a saddle for a horse if you have a pony! Lol!

An 8 and 5 year old common goldfish should be much larger than 2 and 3 inches. That is severely stunted. And will likely never outgrow their tank (as you have discovered).

In your words, they get 8-10 inches or bigger in the right conditions. Which indirectly says that the conditions yours are in are not "right".

Yes a goldfish can survive in a space that small, but it is not growing properly and has hardly any space to swim in a tiny 5 gallon. You are definitely doing something right to have kept them alive that long, but its certainly not a comfortable environment for the fish. I definitely wouldn't go around encouraging it.

 

An 8 and 5 year old common goldfish should be much larger than 2 and 3 inches. That is severely stunted. And will likely never outgrow their tank (as you have discovered).

In your words, they get 8-10 inches or bigger in the right conditions. Which indirectly says that the conditions yours are in are not "right".

Yes a goldfish can survive in a space that small, but it is not growing properly and has hardly any space to swim in a tiny 5 gallon. You are definitely doing something right to have kept them alive that long, but its certainly not a comfortable environment for the fish. I definitely wouldn't go around encouraging it.

Like I said, why buy a saddle for a horse if you only have a pony. If the fish gets too big for the tank, THEN buy a bigger tank. What I don't understand is, since this is a myth; "fish will only grow to the size of their tank", then why do you assume this 8 year old goldfish that has reached the upper limits of his life expectancy in a 5 gallon tank, is "stunted"?

 

Not exactly true about size. The average adult size of a common goldfish is 4". They can get up to 8-10" and even bigger under the right conditions. Their average lifespan is 5-10 years.


Your goldfish should do fine in a 10 gallon tank AS LONG AS: your tank is cycled, you do 25%-50% water changes every week or more, you only feed your fish what he will eat in 2-3 minutes, you have a good running filter that is kept free of clogs and debris in the intake tube, outflow path and around the impeller and you regularly rinse the filter media and replace it as necessary.
My grandkids have three carnival goldfish, one is 8 years old (counting just since he was saved from a cup at the fair) and 3" long, he lives in a 5 gallon tank, the other two are 5 years old and about 2" each, obtained the same way and live together in another 5 gallon tank. None of them have ever been sick-but regular water changes, a varied diet given judiciously, and filter maintenance are practiced. If your Goldie gets too big for his tank, THEN get a bigger tank! No sense spending money on a saddle for a horse if you have a pony! Lol!

Are you serious??? You’ve obviously never kept a goldfish properly. This is exactly the kind of totally incorrect information that needs to be stopped, so people can stop stunting goldfish by keeping them incorrectly.

 

“Surviving” and “thriving” are two different things. Comets don’t belong in tiny tanks.

 

What test are you using? Liquid? Strips?

I use strips. I also have a bad memory and can't access my test results so I might be remembering wrong.

 

Comets and Common goldfish are two different types.

 

Sorry, meant common.

 

Oh dang....I wouldn't keep a group of KuhlI loaches in a 5 gallon. We all know Goldies are high waste fish. Two is not good in a 5 gallon tank. I thought I was mistreating my fish in the 10g! The only fish I'd keep in a 5 gallon is a betta...but the fact that you've kept him in a 5 gal for 8 years is spectacular. Hey, hang on a second. If you lived in a tiny 100 sq foot house, you can survive, but would you like it? Same with fish. I mean, everyone would rather live in a mansion that an Airstream Bambi. If you get your fish a bigger tank, he'll love it. He'll grow better.

Not exactly true about size. The average adult size of a common goldfish is 4". They can get up to 8-10" and even bigger under the right conditions. Their average lifespan is 5-10 years.


Your goldfish should do fine in a 10 gallon tank AS LONG AS: your tank is cycled, you do 25%-50% water changes every week or more, you only feed your fish what he will eat in 2-3 minutes, you have a good running filter that is kept free of clogs and debris in the intake tube, outflow path and around the impeller and you regularly rinse the filter media and replace it as necessary.
My grandkids have three carnival goldfish, one is 8 years old (counting just since he was saved from a cup at the fair) and 3" long, he lives in a 5 gallon tank, the other two are 5 years old and about 2" each, obtained the same way and live together in another 5 gallon tank. None of them have ever been sick-but regular water changes, a varied diet given judiciously, and filter maintenance are practiced. If your Goldie gets too big for his tank, THEN get a bigger tank! No sense spending money on a saddle for a horse if you have a pony! Lol!

 

Like I said, why buy a saddle for a horse if you only have a pony. If the fish gets too big for the tank, THEN buy a bigger tank. What I don't understand is, since this is a myth; "fish will only grow to the size of their tank", then why do you assume this 8 year old goldfish that has reached the upper limits of his life expectancy in a 5 gallon tank, is "stunted"?

Goldfish live like 20 or more years under the right conditions. (30+ in the wild) I would not say 8 is the upper limits of life expectancy. It is the life expectancy of a goldfish in a tank way too small.

Also, the reason for calling that a myth, (the fish will not outgrow their environment) is because fish can keep growing with freshwater flowing through that 5 gallon tank all day long every day. But a 5 gallon tank getting weekly water changes with a goldfish is not the conditions that will allow the fish to outgrow the tank. So you will have a "pony" until the fish dies.

I am not trying to criticize your decision to keep common goldfish in tiny tanks, to each his own!! It happens all the time. However, I really don't think you should be going around encouraging others to do the same. Its not the right environment for common goldfish. Its really not. As others have stated, the fish are surviving, not thriving.

I use strips. I also have a bad memory and can't access my test results so I might be remembering wrong.

I suggest looking into the API liquid test kit. It is much more accurate than strips. And many of the strip tests don't even test ammonia which blows me away!

 

I suggest looking into the API liquid test kit. It is much more accurate than strips. And many of the strip tests don't even test ammonia which blows me away!

I have the tetra test strips. I have the 6-in-1 and have the Ammonia test strips, also by Tetra. But I'll look into that. Thank you!

 

I have the tetra test strips. I have the 6-in-1 and have the Ammonia test strips, also by Tetra. But I'll look into that. Thank you!

The strips are also more expensive long term than the API kit. With your small tank that kit will last years. (until it expires)

Strips are ok once the tank is fully cycled and stable and you just want a general idea. But when you are cycling, or battling spikes, you would benefit from a more accurate liquid test.